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BQA-07 Negotiating Lesson Rates

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About this guide

Some prospective students will try to haggle with you and bring your lesson rate down. Even a small change in your rate can make a significant difference to your overall income over time. This guide will prepare you for people trying to bring your price down and show you how to negotiate your lesson rates in a fair way.

Why you need to be prepared

While most students will be happy to pay the rate as advertised (assuming it is a fair rate), some people will try to bring that rate down to save them money. Being caught off guard by one of these people can end up with you earning a less than fair rate. The people who try to bring your price down are the type of people who do it regularly for other products and services. They've had practice with it so have a good success rate. Unless you prepare yourself against anybody trying to talk your price down, you could end up in trouble.

A $5 discount may not sound like much but for a weekly lesson that $5 discount means you will miss out on $250 a year just from one student. You definitely wouldn't agree to giving a student $250 worth of lessons for free at the start so keep this in mind if they try to ask for a discount.

The problem is compounded if you let it happen regularly. Having five or ten students on your books each with a $5 lesson discount will cost you thousands every year. Preparing against this can really save you a lot of money.

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BPL-10 Setting Your Rates 3: Changing Your Rates

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This is the third part in our guide to help you set your lesson rates. If you haven't already done so, make sure you have read:

BPL-08 Setting Your Rates 1: Comparing the Competition

BPL-09 Setting Your Rates 2: Prepaid Lessons & Discounts

This part will focus on the importance of reviewing your rates after you initially set them and how it impacts your earnings over your life. You will be given different strategies to ensure you're always getting paid a fair rate for your lessons. You will learn how to change your rates while keeping your existing students happy.

Why You Need To Review Your Rates

A dollar today doesn't have the same purchasing power it did ten or twenty years ago. When we consider inflation, a dollar today is worth less than a dollar ten years ago. As a guitar teacher this is important to understand because the income you're receiving from lessons today will actually be worth less in the future unless you review your rates regularly. The sad reality is that many guitar teachers are not earning what they deserve simply because they never considered reviewing their rates over time.

If you teach guitar full time or plan on teaching to make a living, setting your rates right is even more important as you will depend a great deal on your rates. When was the last time you reviewed your rates? Let's have a look at a hypothetical example so you can get an idea on the impact inflation has on the money you earn.

Only Live and Teach Guitar Members have access to this resource and all other resources on the site.

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If you're not a member yet, find out how our professional materials, resources and support can help you succeed as a guitar teacher here.

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